Albion looks to disband Historic Preservation Commission, shift function to Planning Board or codes officer

Photo by Tom Rivers: This photo from November shows downtown Albion from East Bank Street. The downtown area is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

ALBION – The Historic Preservation Commission in Albion has struggled to reach a quorum in recent years and the inability to hold meetings has delayed some building owners from moving forward with projects, Village Board members said.

The HPC needs to give its approval for a certificate of appropriateness for signs and exterior work on a building in the historic downtown district.

The seven-member board currently only has four members.

The Village Board will have a public hearing at 6 p.m. on Feb. 23 about disbanding the Historic Preservation Commission and having its functions handled by either the code enforcement officer or the Village Planning Board.

In Medina, the Planning Board decides whether to grant certificates of appropriateness for signs and exterior building work.

In October 2022, Mary Anne Braunbach, the Albion HPC chairwoman at the time, said the commission was struggling to have a quorum. She didn’t want to hold up projects in the historic district because the board lacked enough participants for an official meeting.

With seven members, the commission needs at least four for a quorum. She suggested reducing the members to five members, and then the minimum would be three for a quorum.

Braunbach said then the commission tries to be a resource to building owners looking to upgrade their facades or do other projects. The commission doesn’t want to be an obstacle, she said, but will push for property owners to meet the standard for the historic district.

“We want to let people know we’re working with them,” she told the Village Board then. “We want to help people make the buildings look better and look historic.”